Ever since fans saw the sign of S.W.O.R.D., the anti-terrorism and intelligence agency in the Marvel Comics, appear in the MCU, many theories had cropped up that claimed S.H.I.E.L.D.’s director Nick Fury created the organization after those snapped away by Thanos were brought back to existence. Many had even speculated that the organization was formed in response to the threat Wanda’s sitcom world posed. But the latest episode ofWandaVision, which is literally an overwhelming treasure box brimming with answers to almost all its major mysteries, has effectively diffused all existing speculations about S.W.O.R.D. There arespoilersahead.
Why the common theory Nick Fury created S.W.O.R.D.?
As you may remember, after it was discovered inCaptain America: Winter Soldierthat S.H.I.E.l.D. was infiltrated and majorly controlled by HYDRA for decades, the organization was disbanded. But it was always obvious that Nick Fury wasn’t happy with the turn of events. When the post-credit scene ofSpider-Man: Far From Homerevealed that Skrulls were impersonating Maria Hill and Nick Fury on Earth, while the real Fury was on what appeared to be an outer space base or spaceship with a large Skrull staff, it was an obvious deduction that he was establishingS.W.O.R.D., which in the comics is an off-shoot branch of S.H.I.E.L.D.
In the comics, S.W.O.R.D.’s command-and-control headquarters is situated on-board the orbital space station known as the Peak, thus it became almost impossible tonotjump to conclusions. ButWandaVisionEpisode 4 has shot down this long-speculated theory
WhileAvengers: Infinity Wardevoted considerable space to the shockingSnapand people being dusted away, the later projects mostly implied it or likeFar From Home, used it for comedic effect. But the Disney+ series,WandaVisionwhich has been getting a mixed reaction from MCU fans for being a “slow” start of Phase IV has picked up insane speed with its Episode 4 which begins with the most surreal representation of how those lost in the Blip came back.
The episode opens with the exact moment when everyone blipped away was brought back byHulk’s snap in Endagame. Monica Rambeau, who had been asleep at the time of the Snap five years ago, had no idea what happened and we get to know that in her absence, her mother Maria Rambeau died from cancer two years after she “disappeared.”
The theories that S.W.O.R.D. was created in response to the threat Wanda posed is eradicated when it is revealed that Monica worked at the US Intelligence AgencybeforeThanos dusted away half the living beings. Seeing that she is called “Captain” by the acting director of the organization, it is obvious that she has been working there for years.
What actually takes the air out of all those “Nick Fury created S.W.O.R.D.” speculations is the reveal that it was Maria who founded the agency years ago, probably around the time when she discovered that allies likeSkrullsand enemies like the Kree exist. She created it to monitor all the future threats and any possible help that the wide expanse of the space may hide.
But after Thanos' arrival on Earth inEndgameand the major catastrophe he brought down upon the planet, the organization has now shifted its focus to extra-terrestrial threats only and is now also invested in the sentient weapon creation. Now, we do remember what happened to the last intelligence agency in the MCU that created deadly weapons to subdue the possibility of a threat only for the enemy to misuse their creation and use it to target millions at the same time?
While it is now confirmed that Fury had no hands in S.W.O.R.D.’s creation, it doesn’t mean that he is not involved in how it works now. As the agency is now functioning with the knowledge that there exist deadly threats in space which may or may not target Earth, what’s better than to establish a headquarters in outer space with the most responsible and badass man in the US running it? Check out the latest episode ofWandaVisiononthe official Disney+ app.
